Legendary Gary is an adventure RPG that tackles comedic storytelling through blends of fantasy and realism. This is the first solo project of Evan Rogers, who had previously worked on What Remains of Edith Finch.
This game was completed entirely as a solo development that took Rogers about four years to finish. Players control the role of Gary, who is lost in his own adolescence, and is trying to become a better person. The player stands essentially as Gary’s subconscious, and is there to aid in his tricky decision making. Gary must be guided through day to day life with the intent of helping improve his interpersonal relationships.
During the night, players assume an alternate role of Gary’s fantastical persona within an RPG he plays. As soon as the sun sets, players enter Legend of the Spear, a fantasy-adventure alternate universe with turn-based combat that happens to align with Gary’s favorite type of gameplay. The battles in Legendary Gary share a unique kind of pressure as the stakes are extremely minimal. Rogers made it evident that the battles are set to be stress-free, and more so based in the realm of problem solving. Combat will contain no dice rolls or time pressure, and allows for each player choice to be resolved in completion before a decision is made to ensure players agree with the outcome.
The game further emulates the fantasy elements through a synthetic-pop soundtrack and vibrant hand-drawn art made by Rogers himself. This unique world is available now on Steam, and updates can be followed by checking Rogers’ Twitter.